Mass Effect: Advent of the Precursors - Codex
by The Reaper's Emissary
Summary: What if there had been a race who had existed before the Leviathans? A race who were more powerful than any other, who created or uplifted all others? What if that race was still here? What would change? This is my first story. The rating may change in the future. Note: Updates will be slow.
1. Codex: Precursor

**Mass Effect: Advent of the Precursor**

**(I do **_**not**_** own Mass Effect, the rights to that franchise remain, as always, with Bioware. I do, however, hold ownership over the OCs that will be included within this story)**

**Codex – Precursors (Edited as of 2157 C.E.)**

An unknown and enigmatic species, not unlike the _'Collectors'_ (Search: _Terminus: Myths and Legends_), legends of the _'Precursors'_ have existed since before many of the great races had even begun to develop the most basic of principles behind societal development.

Supposedly a species, according to stories from those who have – allegedly – met them, more ancient than the _Protheans_ themselves, the _Precursors_ have appeared during nearly seven hundred key moments throughout _Asari_ history (Search: _Guardians of Athame_) and mythology (Search: _Travellers of the Long Dark_) alone. In the ancient mythologies of the Council species they will often appear as peaceful gods or creators, with the only key exceptions being the _Batarians_ (Search: _Great Monster of Kar'Shan_) and the _Turians_ (Search: _Fall of the Mad Hierarch_), such as in the case of the _Quarian_ (Search: _The Fathers of Rannoch_), _Krogan_ (Search: _The Tamer of Kalros_), _Hanar_ (Search: _The Enablers of the Enkindlers_) and _Salarian_ (Search: _Star-Gods of Sur'Kesh_) cultures.

Claims about sightings of this mysterious race have continued from as early as the founding of the _Asari_ colonisation program (Search: _Monster of Athame: Elaborate Hoax or True First-Contact_), a time well before the founding of their open republics system, and continued till as late as 2073 C.E. when all contact with the _Asari_ colony of _Illium_ was lost during a raid by _Batarian_ pirate and slaver groups, with barely a few hundred survivors of the attack turning up on the citadel about a week later, one singular account of events surfacing after they were found (Search: _Fire in the Sky: The Only First-Hand Account of the Pirate-Raid on Illium_), during which a leviathan of a ship, supposedly larger than the _Citadel_ itself, if reports, as well as vids, are to be believed, appeared and started to decimate the _Batarian_ fleets – extranet vids and photos from the event have been labelled an _'elaborate hoax'_ by the scientific community.

In wake of the merciless attack by pirates, and their subsequent destruction at the hands of this race, there has been public desire to establish contact. The Council, however, has refused to _'waste valuable resources chasing a fantastical children's story'_. The former _Turian_ Councillor Septus Caedonis (2023 C.E. – 2120 C.E.) was the most vocal in their refusal of the proposal, stating that _'All of these events throughout the histories of every race, while they may share some distinct similarities, are, simply put, a series of elaborate hoaxes perpetrated by young, narrow-minded races who, at those points, had yet to even form society. We cannot chase legends and fantasies when there are larger problems to contend with, the Terminus and Pirate groups being key examples'_.

Regardless of these events, and the many scientific studies 'proving' otherwise, many still view the _Precursors_ as being real – the _Hanar_ especially hold this belief to be true, as their religious texts often refer to the _'Enablers'_ – and seek to have them welcomed to the galactic community as full members of the council, or as equals to them.


	2. Codex: Rise and Fall of the Mad Hierarch

**(I do **_**not**_** own Mass Effect, that intellectual property is trademarked under Bioware. Any OCs that appear here shall be of my own creation, therefore making them my property.)**

**Codex – Rise and Fall of the Mad Hierarch (Edited as of 2117 C.E.)**

_The Rise_

The _'Rise and Fall of the Mad Hierarch'_ is a period of _Turian_ history typically associated with their feudal and early industrial eras, more specifically the establishment, rise and fall, though mainly the fall, of the first Empire of_ Palavenia_ (Search: _Nation to Planet: A History of the Empires of Palavenia_).

After the victory of Grand-Hierarch Hortendos I (Search: _Hortendos the Conqueror_) against the _First Autarchic Coalition_ (Search: _Nobility: Wars of the Autarchic Coalitions_), which helped to establish _Palavenia_ as an empire, Seclio Manitius Hortendos (Search: _The First Mad Hierarch of Palaven_) began poisoning his mother, the Grand-Hierarch herself, Comiponia Hortendos (Search: _Great Turian Heroes: The First Hierarch_), in hopes of attaining the throne of _Palavenia_. _Palavenia_ was a nation formed from the former city-states of _Cipritine_, _Agorius_, _Pholus_ and _Opinian_. Seclio's thoughts and desires were often recorded in what has currently been dubbed as 'journals', long rolls of parchment detailing the Hierarch's life, only one quarter of which have been found, with one such journal stating that, _'I will carry this great nation into a better and brighter future, one which __she__ cannot hope to bring about.'_

It should be noted, before continuing, however, that without the – supposed – assistance of the _Precursors_ (Search: _Black Powder: A History of Turian Firearms_) and their providing of the preliminary knowledge behind gunpowder, alongside the ways in which it could be utilised, that the nation of _Palavenia_ and, subsequently, _Palaven_, the _Turian_ home-world, would not exist in the same way as we have come to know it.

After claiming the throne for himself utilising bribery, blackmail and, in some cases, murder, Seclio Hortendos, then dubbed Hortendos II of _Palavenia_, set out on a 'crusade', of sorts, against the remaining Autarchs – later dubbed the _War of the Second Autarchic Coalition_ – and, thanks to a military which was being constantly bolstered by conscription, specifically of civilians with latent biotic potential, then referred to as 'Cabals' (Search: _Blood, Honour and Blind Loyalty: The Beginnings of the Cabal Regiment_), cut a bloody swathe through the Second Coalition's forces whereby he was able to double the territory owned by _Palavenia_. This, in turn, made _Palavenia_ one of the largest nations to date, controlling around ½ of the continental land mass _Domititis_, the main continental body of _Palaven_, taking up around ⅔ of the planetary surface, with seven colonies situated across roughly ¼ of the archipelagos of _Aberlius_ (Search: _The Colonial Wars: The Talon Islands_) in the northern hemisphere, and around five colonies, taking up about ⅓ of the landmass, on the smaller continent of _Orotumus_ (Search: _The Colonial Wars: Hunt for the Great Southern Continent_) in the southern hemisphere. This, in turn, would cause the native civilisation, which, for several thousand years, had developed its own unique culture free from outside influence (Search: _Orotumuns: Natives of the Southern Continent_), to be forced out or aggressively assimilated into the nation of _Palavenia_.

_The Fall_

It was after this point, however, that Hortendos II, then 34 years old, began to notice the cracks developing within his empire. After years of war and colonial expansion, as well as the introduction of industrialisation, public approval for the empire, alongside Hortendos II himself, had diminished greatly which, ultimately, led to a rebellion against his imperialist regime (Search: _The First Schism of Palavenia_) in 1296-3A (Search: _Turian Calendar System_). In response to this act of defiance, Hortendos II tasked the military with purging ⅓ of the population as punishment (Search: _Chronicles of the First Mad Hierarch: The Genocide of Orotumus_) – this number mainly consisted of _Orotumian_ natives.

Following the First Schism Hortendos II began to close in on himself, only opening up to his consort, Graginia Molaraka (Search: _The Angel of the Mad Hierarch_), a former peasant girl from one of the conquered territories, _Consevia_ (Search: _Consevia: War of the Platinum Hills_), a former protectorate of the empire of _Luciion_ (Search: _Autarchic Era Ruling Families: Luciion_), essentially becoming a recluse. He began to treat everyone, even his generals, with suspicion (Search: _Madness: The Fall of Hortendos II_), due to his fear that they were all, as his later journals state, _'Out for my blood, and they shall do anything to see it spilled'_. As a result of this Hortendos II began to impose strict laws, mainly curfews and sanctions, against his populous, even enforcing a number of these laws with the penalty of death, should they have been broken (Search: _Dark Days: The Rise of the 'Autarchy' of Palavenia_).

Something worth noting, much like with the previous section, before continuing on, is that after the events of the First Schism, the Precursors made a – apparent – reappearance, being confused by the surviving natives of _Orotumus_ for the embodiment of their Collective Spirits (Search: _Republicanism, Conservationism and the Collective Spirit: A History of Orotumian Society, Culture and Religion Before Palavenian Settlement_), and, presumably disheartened with what they saw, assisted elements of the _Palavenian_ populace in preparing their rebellion against Hortendos II and his supporters (Search: _Brucril's War: A Recount of the Events Before, During and After the Second Schism from the Journals of a Forgotten Soldier_).

Although the _Palavenian_ Empire would collapse at a later point, around 10 years after these aforementioned events, with the assistance of the Third Autarchic Coalition (Search: _Nobility: Wars of the Autarchic Coalitions – The Final Coalition_), it was at this point that the beginnings of a Second Schism began to take root (Search: _War of Brothers: The History Behind the Second Schism of Palavenia_) which, in turn, would, ultimately, lead to the sacking of the capital, _Cipritine_, and the eventual beheading of Hortendos II (Search: _Deposed: The Last Days of Hortendos II_) in 7-4A of the _Turian_ calendar, at the age of 66.

_The Legacy_

While the reign of Hortendos II is often referred to by historians, both _Turian_ and otherwise, as tyrannic, megalomaniacal and even, in many cases, autarchic in nature (Search: _Hortendos II: The Collected Historical Studies from Council Space – Revised 2100 Edition_), _Turians_, both soldier and civilian, still hold him in high regard – as demonstrated during a key Hierarchy interplanetary holiday (Search: _Hierarch's Day_). This is mainly due to the fact that without Hortendos II, or his mother, Hortendos I, and the establishment of the empire of _Palavenia_, by proxy, that, as stated previously, the _Turian_ Hierarchy would, most likely, have not come to exist in the same way, if at all (Search: _Turians: A Study of the Hierarchy and its Propagation_).

Many theories currently exist as to precisely why Hortendos II acted the way he did in life, though the most commonly accepted theory is a birth defect that, until 1500 C.E., was previously unknown to the medical world. This defect has earned the moniker of Mad Hierarch's Disease (Search: _Turian Medical Disorders and Known Diseases_), though the technical name for it is _Fausril_ Syndrome, a separation of the plates on a young _Turian's_ body during gestation, particularly around the cranial region, that has been known to cause anything from mild headaches and nausea (Search: _Fausril Syndrome – Mild_) to chronic muscle pain and paranoia alongside, in some extremely rare cases, aggressively antisocial behaviour (Search: _Fausril Syndrome – Severe_). It is caused when a female goes without food for an extended period of time, similarly to Hortendos I, who, from historical evidence, was a very light eater, so as to retain her male figure. This act of starving one's self, in _Turian_ society, at least, is typically referred to as Comiponia Syndrome (Search: _Comiponia Syndrome: The Signs to look for and How to Correct it – Athame University Edition_).

Despite the fact that Hortendos II may not officially possess any heirs, evidence has been found to support the longstanding belief that he fathered a number of illegitimate children (Search: _The Forgotten Children: The Hunt for Hortendos II Descendants_), the most famous of which was born to his consort Graginia Molaraka, Comidia Molaraka (Search: _Comidia Molaraka'Hortendos: Republican, Revolutionary, Ruler_), who, at a later point, took on her grandmother's name as well – Comidia's main descendants are the Oraka family. There is also evidence that he sired a son with Lutanaria Luciion, Postipius Sirius Luciion (Search: _Postipius Sirius Luciion/Hortenrian: A History of Palaven's Last Autarch_), who later took the name Hortenrian, in honour of his father, before dying in battle at the age of 42, in 37-4A.

In terms of _Turian_ religion, the Spirits (Search: _The Legacy of the Orotumuns: The Collective Spirits and their Relevance in Turian Society_), Hortendos II Collective Spirit is generally thought of as a renegade, someone who does the wrong thing for the right reasons, and, towards the later point of his life, delusional, evidenced clearly by his last journal, which states: _'I am this nation, I am a god, and no man will ever, __can__ ever, hope to kill me; I will weather the storm!'_ He was proven wrong, of course, during his beheading by the first Archangel (Search: _Sapphire Armour: A History of the Archangels of Palaven_), in the year 7-4A, as previously stated.


End file.
